


The Lost Boy

by JustJen



Series: A Strange Paradox [1]
Category: Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII-2
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-09
Updated: 2014-05-09
Packaged: 2018-01-24 03:45:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1590494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustJen/pseuds/JustJen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An unexpected paradox sends Serah and Noel on a mission to fix it while leaving a fourteen year old boy with the Director of the Academy</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Lost Boy

**Author's Note:**

> So while I was playing this game I always wondered what would have happened if Serah and Noel could have traveled back to before the fall of Cocoon. That idea gave birth to this short series. Hope you enjoy! :)

 

 

Neither of them ever saw this as a possibility. Sure, the paradoxes were all sorts of crazy but how did _this_ happen? The two looked at each other unsure of how to proceed then back at the green eyed silver haired boy staring at them confused. 

"S-Serah?" He asked clearly shaken at what ever strange ordeal landed him here. What was little Hope Estheim doing in Yaschas Massif 10AF?

"Hope? Is that really you?" Serah asked making sure. It hadn't been the first time they encountered look alike humans. 

"Of course it's me, who else would it be?" He replied looking back and forth between Serah and Noel.

"Err...this is Noel. He's a...friend." She tried to explain. She wasn't exactly sure if telling him anything would be a good idea. She would need to speak to his older self about that first. 

"Nice to meet you." Hope offered as best he could. Noel grinned and shook his hand. 

"Where am I? And why is it so dark? I thought you were crystal, what are you doing here?" He asked looking around bewildered. 

"Uh, it's kind of hard to explain. Tell you what, tell me what you last remember and maybe we can make sense out of this." Serah offered smiling warmly. 

"Well, last thing I remember I was following Snow and Light on Pulse. We were trying to make our way back to Cocoon when I saw something strange in the water. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it so I went on my own to check it out. Next thing I knew I woke up here. Wherever here is." Serah looked at Noel realizing exactly what had happened. Due to the paradoxes the time period overlapped before Cocoons fall when the six were still on their journey. Hope must have gotten sucked into one of the distortions and wound up here.

"Isn't this like really bad?" Noel asked concerned. 

"I mean, won't his being here change everything? This could be catastrophic." Noel added.

"We should talk to Ho- the director. He would know best how to proceed." Serah offered. 

"Yeah but considering who the director is, wouldn't that be a conflict of interest?" Noel pointed out. Serah sighed not seeing any other options. They certainly couldn't just leave him here. 

"What other choice do we have?" She asked and unfortunately Noel had no answer.

"Okay Hope, can you wait here and stay hidden until we get back?" Hopes eyes widened in horror.

"N-No! You have to take me with you!" He all but wrapped himself around Serah holding on for dear life. So much for subtlety, the director was about to get the shock of his life. 

 

-

 

As the three began the climb up the steps to where the director was studying the oracle drive Noel realized they should at least take some sort of precaution. Who could say what would happen when older Hope saw younger Hope and vise versa. 

"Uhh Hope, I need you to trust me on this and do me a really big favor okay?"

"What is it?" The young boy asked nervously. Noel had a hard time believing this frail little boy would grow into the director of the Academy. 

"I need to blindfold you."

"What? Why?!" He looked horrified at the idea.

"Nothing bad is gonna happen I promise, but there's a lot you don't understand yet and I need you to trust me here. As soon as it is safe you can take it off." 

"I..Serah?" He looked to the pink haired woman for confirmation. She nodded.

"It's okay Hope, I promise. Here, you can even hold my hand the way up okay?" The young man seemed frustrated but could see he had no other choice. 

"What am I supposed to use as a blindfold?" 

"How bout that?" Noel pointed at the bandanna wrapped around his wrist and reached for it. Hope protested wildly but Noel had made quick work of it and it was in his hand. Hope instantly covered up the area that was now exposed with his other hand. Noel looked at him surprised but Serah realized what it was he was trying to hide. She knelt down and offered her hand as a gesture to see what he was hiding.

"It's your brand isn't it?" Hope nodded but refused to remove his hand.

"Please can I see? No one has to know okay? It'll be our secret." He hesitated but offered her his arm but when he removed his hand there was nothing there.

"My brand! It's..gone! How is this possible? I never fulfilled my focus." He looked panicked and even more confused.

"You see? We all have questions and the man we need to speak to is just up there. I know you have lots of questions, we all do so lets go see what he has to say hm?" 

"But why do I have to be blindfolded? I don't understand." Noel cut in and laughed.

"Trust me, you'll understand why soon enough." Serah shot Noel a look but he disregarded it. She wrapped the blindfold around the young mans eyes and took him by the hand. They made the climb slowly so he didn't miss a step or fall. When they reached the top they saw the director leaning over the table a few feet away, his back turned toward them. Serah and Noel exchanged one last look and took a deep breath.

"Umm, excuse me Director?" Serah said in a lighthearted way. He turned around at the sound of her voice smiling.

"Serah, please call me-" He froze before he could finish the sentence. His eyes fell immediately upon the young man who was blindfolded standing between the pair. He looked the boy up and down and had no need to ask who it was.

"H-How?" He asked bewildered.

"We were hoping you could tell us that." Noel replied disappointed at the directors reaction.

"I...oh wow. Does he, I mean do I? Umm." He scratched his head trying to make some sense of the situation. Serah explained what young Hope had told them and finally he began to understand.

"It's weird though isn't it? Shouldn't I somehow have memories of all this?" Serah and Noel looked at each other knowing all too well what they would need to do. They had to fix the paradox so this whole event would never happen.

"Guys, can I please take this stupid thing off now?"

"Errr.." Serah looked at the director for his opinion on how to proceed.

"I don't see why not. When you guys fix this it will never have occurred to begin with so no harm no foul. Not to say that it isn't..."

"Weird?" Noel finished for him smiling.

"So...you know that means we have to leave him here with you right? We obviously can't take him with us." Serah informed the director.

"Yes, I guess you are right." He still couldn't take his eyes off the ever growing antsy young man.

"Well, I couldn't possibly think of anyone who would take better care of him." Noel teased and the three laughed.

"K, he's all yours. We'll be back as soon as we can. Enjoy some time with...yourself." Noel smiled and pulled Serah onto the chocobo before abruptly disappearing toward the gate. The young man hesitated realizing he was now alone with some stranger. Only his voice sounded somehow familiar in a very weird sort of way. The director took a deep breath and crouched down, gently removing the blindfold. 

Trying to describe what it felt like for either of them was beyond anything words could say. For a long moment the two just stared into each others eyes. The same beautiful emerald pools looking into one another.

"You're...." Young Hope tried to find the words but the tightness in his chest was making it hard for him to breathe let alone speak. The director smiled warmly and quite surprisingly to both of them hugged the young man and held him close a moment.

"Yes, I am you." 


End file.
